On food and cooking the science and lore of the kitchen ( PDFDrive ) 878

can, so much of the cooking time is moistening time Presoaking seeds for a few hours or overnight can cut cooking times by half or more Most seeds get quite soft when they’ve absorbed enough liquid to be about 60– 70% water by weight That quantity of water is the equivalent of about 1.7 times the dry weight of the seeds, or about 1.4 times their volume Recipes generally call for much more water than this to allow for water lost to evaporation during cooking The texture of fully cooked seeds is soft and fragile at cooking temperatures, but firms during cooling If an intact appearance is important, it’s good to let grains and legumes cool down before handling them Turning Seeds into Meat Substitutes Vegetarian cooks, particularly Buddhists in China and Japan, have long used grains, beans, and nuts to make foods with the chewy texture and savory flavor of meat Protein extracts from wheat (gluten or seitan, p 468) and soybean (yuba, p 494) can be manipulated to simulate meatprotein fibers, and fermented to produce savory, meaty flavors In seed mixtures, whole grains lend chewiness, beans a softer background and some sweetness and complexity of flavor, and nuts both richness and roastiness Of course the most important grain and legume foods are made from finely ground flours or extracts Mix water with ground grains or with starch extracted from beans and the result is a dough or batter, which heat can turn into noodles or flat breads or cakes Aerate doughs or batters with the help of yeasts or bacteria or chemical leaveners, and the result is raised breads and cakes Doughs and batters are special materials in their own ...China and Japan, have long used grains, beans, and nuts to make foods with the chewy texture and savory flavor of meat Protein extracts from wheat (gluten or seitan, p 468) and soybean (yuba,... fibers, and fermented to produce savory, meaty flavors In seed mixtures, whole grains lend chewiness, beans a softer background and some sweetness and complexity of flavor, and nuts both richness and roastiness... Aerate doughs or batters with the help of yeasts or bacteria or chemical leaveners, and the result is raised breads and cakes Doughs and batters are special materials in their own